PHP entry-level algorithms test: Online screening assessment to hire the best candidates

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PHP (coding): Entry-Level Algorithms test

Summary of the PHP (coding): Entry-Level Algorithms test

This PHP test assesses a candidate’s ability to program a small algorithm and tests their basic programming skills. Using a short and straightforward coding task, this coding test helps you identify developers with the most essential PHP skills.

Covered skills

  • Entry-level algorithms

Use the PHP (coding): Entry-Level Algorithms test to hire

Entry-level developers using PHP in their technology stack.

This test is part of our Coding: Entry-Level Algorithms skills test

This PHP coding test forms part of our Coding: Entry-Level Algorithms test

All entry-level coding languages are now centralized in a single, language-agnostic test to ensure hiring developers is simpler than ever. Offer your candidates a choice of 19+ entry-level coding languages in one test. 

Explore the latest addition to our programming skills test library.

Type

Programming skills

Time

15 min

Languages

English

Level

Entry level
graphic image for programming skills tests

About the PHP (coding): Entry-Level Algorithms test

PHP is a popular general-purpose scripting language that is geared towards web development. PHP is fast, flexible, and pragmatic, and can power both simple static websites and complex, dynamic professional-grade websites.

Strong foundational knowledge of programming in PHP is essential for junior programmers. It allows them to hit the ground running in a new role and sets them up for further professional growth.

This test gives candidates 10 minutes to complete a straightforward coding task. The code is evaluated against a set of test cases, some of which are available to the candidate to determine if they are on the right track.

This is a great initial screening test that allows you to effectively vet candidates based on essential skills.

We recommend combining coding tests with at least one of our cognitive ability tests evaluating numerical or analytical skills.

The test is made by a subject-matter expert

Alfred W.

Alfred is an experienced software engineer with deep expertise in Python development, data engineering, and cloud solutions architecture. He has built out a cloud native data platform for a $16B hedge fund that systematically ingested TBs/PBs of data to drive quantitative trading strategies.

Alfred is also a certified AWS Solutions Architect and DevOps Engineer at the Professional. In his free time, he enjoys reading about personal psychology and new trends in technology.

Crafted with expert knowledge

TestGorilla’s tests are created by subject matter experts. We assess potential subject-matter experts based on their knowledge, ability, and reputation. Before being published, each test is peer-reviewed by another expert, then calibrated using hundreds of test takers with relevant experience in the subject. Our feedback mechanisms and unique algorithms allow our subject-matter experts to constantly improve their tests.

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The PHP (coding): Entry-Level Algorithms test will be included in a PDF report along with the other tests from your assessment. You can easily download and share this report with colleagues and candidates.

php code test

Hire the best with the PHP code test

The PHP (Coding) Entry-level Algorithms test can help you accurately assess candidates’ skills if you’re hiring for a software-developer role in which a basic knowledge of PHP algorithms is required. Before we discuss the importance of pre-employment tests and why you should use one in your hiring process, let’s first take a look and see why PHP matters in today’s business environment.

Why PHP is important to your business

PHP is a programming language most often used for web development. It’s been around for more than twenty years and it’s one of the most popular programming languages out there, competing for the top spots with Python and JavaScript.

The code that software developers write in PHP runs on a web server instead of a web browser. PHP is a versatile programming language and developers can use it for different things such as building desktop apps, object-oriented programming, or creating web pages.

PHP has been around since the beginning of programming so it’s not surprising that there are a lot of frameworks available for it. Programmers have been using these frameworks to help them code easier. The following frameworks are the most popular ones for PHP:

Laravel Zend Yii Symfony Phalcon CodeIgniter Laminas Project CakePHP FuelPHP

PHP is all about versatility and is used extensively for many different applications and across many businesses. Some of the biggest companies have created entire websites or platforms in PHP: Facebook and WordPress, for example, were built using PHP.

PHP is widely used for a variety of reasons:

It’s relatively easy to recruit PHP developers, because it’s a well-established and popular programming language There’s a large community of PHP developers who help each other and create new frameworks PHP documentation is well-maintained and educational materials for PHP are readily available It improves websites’ loading speed significantly It works well with HTML

Your company’s website performance will depend on the PHP skills of the developers in your team. This makes it crucial to evaluate applicants’ knowledge and expertise accurately and objectively when hiring and be able to pick the right candidate. And the best match needs to have many more skills than just being a good PHP developer.

php code test

How to find the right candidate

If you’re hiring for a position where basic knowledge in PHP is required, this is one of the first skills you should assess. However, the right person needs to have several crucial soft skills, too. These include:

• Communication skills: More often than not, software developers work in teams, and this means they need to have excellent communication skills. The ideal candidate should be able to communicate their work to their peers and managers and be able to discuss eventual problems or obstacles they face. For this, they need to communicate in a clear and professional way.

• Empathy: Even though programmers spend most of their time working in front of a screen, they should never forget that the products they create will be used by other people. Being able to put themselves in other people’s shoes helps software developers create user-friendly interfaces and products.

• Critical-thinking skills: Problems that require creative solutions are a daily thing in the life of a programmer, so the perfect candidate will be able to deal with them with a can-do mentality. Having a solution-oriented mindset helps developers handle problems on their own and also makes them a good team player on whom others can rely.

• Time-management skills: Development projects sometimes have tight deadlines, so software developers working with PHP need to be capable of managing their work days efficiently if they want to complete their tasks within the allotted time frame.

• Teamwork: Developers today often work in teams and program in pairs, which means that being a good team player is crucial for success on the job. Candidates should understand that teamwork is a prerequisite to a project’s success, and that they need to put teamwork first, before their own professional achievements. One’s availability and readiness to help other team members increases the chances of success of big and small projects alike.

Besides having the right soft skills, applicants also need to have a strong culture-add potential and have values that are in alignment with your organization’s values, mission, and vision, and those of their future colleagues. Only then can the team work harmoniously together. Thankfully, you can test for all of these skills with our skills assessments and evaluate someone’s potential for cultural alignment.

php code test

What does the PHP (Coding) Entry-level Algorithms test assess?

The PHP (Coding) Entry-level Algorithms test will help you evaluate candidates’ basic coding skills in PHP and find the right person for the role. It’s ideal for junior programmers who don’t have much experience with PHP but still need to know the basics of PHP algorithms.

The test assesses candidates’ fundamental knowledge and basic programming skills in PHP. It uses a short coding assessment, where candidates need to program a small algorithm. Candidates have 10 minutes to complete the task; the code is tested against a set of test cases to establish whether applicants have the right skills.

This coding test helps you identify the candidates who have solid basic knowledge of PHP and can be combined with other role-specific tests, coding assessments, cognitive ability tests, or soft skills tests.

In summary

When you want to hire a software developer who is well-versed in the basics of PHP, using TestGorilla’s skills assessments, and the PHP code test in particular, can help you streamline and simplify the recruitment process.

Here are the three main reasons why:

• Tests help create a bias-free hiring process: CV screening is a thing of the past and it exposes you to a multitude of hiring biases. Pre-employment tests, on the other hand, accurately assess candidates’ skills and help you identify the best talent, bias-free.

• Scoring is objective: All candidates take the same test with the same questions and tests are graded automatically. You simply need to check applicants’ test results and compare them to see who did better.

• Assessments are very easy to use: The hiring manager simply needs to send the pre-employment assessment to candidates with a single click. It makes no difference how many candidates there are – on your end, the effort is the same, regardless of whether you need to assess 20, 50, or 500 candidates.

When hiring a software developer, you need to make sure you find the right person for the open position. By using a pre-employment test such as the PHP (Coding) Entry-level Algorithms test, finding the perfect candidate is a breeze – and you can be sure your recruitment process will be objective and bias-free.

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